About 30 artists were on hand for the opening ceremony of the oil painting exhibition Sand Dream at the Elion Art Gallery in Beijing on September 29, 2013. [Photo provided to chinadaiy.com.cn]

The oil painting exhibition Sand Dream: Oil Paintings on Kubuqi Desert opened at the Elion Art Gallery in Beijing on September 29, 2013.

Hosted by the Elion Charity Fund, the exhibition featured over 70 oil paintings depicting the Kubuqi desert’s past and present in North China’s Inner Mongolia autonomous region.

According to Du Meihou, a board member with the Elion Resource Group and chairman of Elion Culture & Art, about 100 artists from home and abroad journeyed to the heart of the Kubuqi desert this past summer. After exploring the desert’s history, the group of artists created over 500 oil paintings reflecting the subtle relationships that exist between humans and nature.

The oil paintings depict aspects of the desert from its past desolation to the desertification control efforts that have been implemented over the years, with some pieces featuring a tranquil desert oasis.

Kubuqi, the country's seventh-largest desert, covers 18,600 square kilometers. Due to excessive deforestation and rapid industrialization, soil erosion has long been a serious problem.

According to Du Meihou, Elion Resources Group has been working to maintain an ecological balance in the Kubuqi Desert for 25 years. So far, it has converted more than 5,000 square km of desert into green land.

Exhibition ends November 15.

Location: Elion Art Gallery, No. 23 Qianmen Dajie, Dongcheng District, Beijing